Facedrive Inc. (“Facedrive”) (TSXV: FD), a Canadian “people-and-planet-first” tech ecosystem, is pleased to announce that its wholly-owned subsidiary, HiRide Share Ltd. (“HiRide”), the first-of-its-kind long-distance, socially responsible car-pooling platform is launching a global virtual hackathon (the “hackathon”) that invites individuals and teams around the world to present unique ideas to mitigate the social and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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COVID-19 has changed the way people do business and interact with each other, and social distancing is the new norm. Individuals and businesses are navigating uncertain terrain as the world starts to resume life after an extended quarantine and shutdown. These challenging times call for creative adaptation through innovative and out-of-the-box thinking. The hackathon has been organized to promote and encourage such innovation.
The end goal of this challenge is to identify and implement outstanding and novel solutions in the areas of clean tech, AI, and COVID-19 response, with the potential to bring about meaningful positive change and integrate organically into Facedrive’s ESG ecosystem.
The hackathon will commence on June 26, 2020 and will be hosted on Devpost, a leading platform to host software competitions worldwide and intake respective submissions. In order to participate, applicants have to submit their proposals by July 23rd, 2020, and be at least 18 years of age at the time of submission. The challenge is primarily targeted at university and college students pursuing their degrees in STEM, environmental or social studies, although all interested individuals may apply. The hackathon will be available globally, but will not be open to the residents of areas where the laws of Canada and the USA, or local laws, prohibit participating or receiving a prize in the challenge.
The hackathon will offer a combined total of up to CAD $350,000 in cash awards to participants. Furthermore, the top five entries will receive invitations to fully paid internships at Facedrive and HiRide to help transform their ideas into reality. The winning idea of the hackathon will be awarded up to CAD $100,000 cash if developed into a harnessed solution.
Facedrive and HiRide are driven by the goal of a “greener” reality and aim to provide a socially and environmentally responsible ridesharing platform that offers convenience to their customers and drivers. Furthermore, Facedrive’s synergistic complementary platforms, Facedrive Foods, Facedrive Health and Facedrive Marketplace aim to provide a complete eco-system of valuable services to today’s socially and environmentally conscious and discerning consumer.
The virtual hackathon is a joint effort between Facedrive and HiRide that reflects the companies’ core commitment to putting the customer first and continually incorporating consumer and business insight to drive business opportunities. The two companies are confident and optimistic that there are many untapped solutions towards mitigating the human and economic costs of COVID-19 and towards transforming the pandemics’ challenges into opportunities.
“It is becoming clear we are battling this crisis on two fronts: social and economic. We know that our businesses have been hurt, but also, our social lives have changed immeasurably,” stated Sayan Navaratnam, CEO of Facedrive. “But I am convinced that, through sincere collaboration and smart innovation, we can come out of this pandemic stronger.”
“We know that all problems have solutions, and we want to encourage students to think of ways that we can turn a seemingly negative situation into a positive one. That is the essence of what entrepreneurship is about, and that will always be a central piece to our business. This is also why we are introducing the virtual hackathon,” said Akshat Soni, CEO of HiRide.
About HiRide
HiRide is an evolution in car-pooling. HiRide is an innovative, first-of-its-kind long-distance travel car-pooling app that seeks to change the face of transportation for commuters. HiRide’s mission is to transport students and professionals all across the globe to their desired destinations while reducing the negative impact of the ridesharing segment on the environment. HiRide is an entirely new, people powered global transport network that connects drivers with empty seats to passengers looking for a ride. HiRide’s goal is to make travel and social life efficient as well as more affordable for its members worldwide. This is achieved through its offering of an innovative platform, dedicated customer service, and a fast-growing community of users.
For more about HiRide, visit www.hiride.ca.
About Facedrive
Facedrive is a multi-faceted “people-and-planet first” platform offering socially-responsible services to local communities with a strong commitment to doing business fairly, equitably and sustainably. Facedrive rideshare was the first to offer green transportation solutions in the TaaS space, planting thousands of trees and giving users a choice between EVs, hybrids and conventional vehicles. Facedrive Marketplace offers curated merchandise created from sustainably sourced materials. Facedrive Foods offers contactless deliveries of healthy foods right to consumers’ doorsteps. Facedrive Health develops innovative technological solutions to the most acute health challenges of the day. Facedrive is changing the ridesharing, food delivery, e-commerce and health tech narratives for the better, for everyone.
For more about Facedrive, visit www.facedrive.com.
Facedrive Inc.
100 Consilium Pl, Unit 400, Scarborough, ON, Canada M1H 3E3
www.facedrive.com
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